Nozzle providing a quick change from hard spray to soft flow



1966 RVA. DOBSON NOZZLE PROVIDING A QUICK CHANGE FROM HARD SPRAY TO SOFT FLOW Filed June 15, 1964 lllHlllilIlllllllllM ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,288,378 NOZZLE PROVIDING A QUHCK CHANGE FROM HARD SPRAY T0 SOFT FLOW Robert A. Dobson, 25 Victoria Road, Burlingame, Calif. Filed June 15, 1964, Ser. No. 375,268 4 Claims. (Cl. 239-547) The present invention relates to improvements in a quick change nozzle, and more particularly to a quick change nozzle adapted for use on a flexible hose to provide a delivery of water therefrom in the form of a spray changeable between a hard and soft spray.

It is well-known that the water flow from a conventional garden hose and the like may be desired in the form of a hard spray, and conventional nozzles are provided for the purpose. These nozzles contain standard attachment means for attaching the nozzle to the end of the hose. On the other hand, it is also well-known that the simple soft fiow of water from the end of the hose is often desired particularly for certain types of irrigation where a hard spray is either not desired or prohibited by law. Accordingly, the ordinary user is forced to effect a change between hard and soft spray by unscrewing the nozzle and this entails shutting off the water in order to unfasten or fasten the nozzle without danger of wetting the user.

This conventional procedure is eminently unsuitable where frequent back and forth changes are desired as may be encountered when washing an automobile or in certain types of garden care. For example, in washing a car it is often desirable to first spray the car with a hard spray so as to remove all loose dirt before any cleaning material is applied. Then after application of material it may be desired to provide a soft flow of water during the scrubbing of a particular surface which is hard to clean and finally it may be desired to rinse with a final hard spray. Since small areas are washed at a time, it is seen that frequent interchange of sprays is desirable.

In another situation, where plants such as shrubbery are to be watered and attended it is often desirable to provide a hard spray against the foliage in order to assist in removal of certain materials or pests such as red spider mite and mildew and then follow up by root watering where a hard spray would cause dirt to wash away and damage delicate root structure. Accordingly since such shrubbery is watered in one by one fashion, frequent changes between hard and soft spray is again desired.

Obviously many other situations will arise Where it is desirable to effect easy change from a hard to a soft spray and the reverse, and the present invention is suitable for any such application. It will also be appreciated, that although the invention is particularly directed for use of water with a flexible hose such as a garden hose, that delivery of other liquid media such as other aqueous media may be within the ambit of the invention.

Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a nozzle which may be attached through standard fitting to a source of liquid under pressure, with the nozzle being capable of providing a spray easily changeable between a hard spray and a soft flow.

Another object of the invention is to provide a quick change nozzle of the character described which is simple in construction, has no moving parts, and is absolutely reliable in operation.

A further object of the invention is to provide a quick change nozzle of the character described in which a conical shaped spray is delivered through a simple orifice by 3,238,378 Patented Nov. 29, 1966 means of a nozzle construction which is also capable of providing a soft or gentle delivery.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a method of spraying utilizing the quick change nozzle of this invention in which the operative changes from a hard to a soft spray are easily effected through simple manual operation.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent as the specification progresses, and the new and useful features of the quick change nozzle will be fully defined in the claims attached hereto.

The preferred form of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing forming a part of this description, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a typical quick change nozzle constructed according to the invention with parts broken away and shown in sections in order to better illustrate the internal constructions thereof;

FIGURE 2, a side elevational view of a part that is used to form the chamber operative to provide a quick change characteristic of the nozzle shown in FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 3, a sectional view' taken substantially in the plane of line 33 of FIGURE 2.

While only the preferred form of the invention is shown, it should be understood that various changes or modificaiions may be made within the scope of the claims attached hereto without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Referring to the drawing in greater detail, there is shown a quick change nozzle 11 constructed for delivery of water from the source under pressure in a spray changeable between .a hard spray as indicated by broken lines 12 and a soft flow formed from the flow of water through the entire end opening of the unit. As here shown, the nozzle comprises a chamber 13, and means 14 for attaching said chamber to a source of water or other liquid under pressure. As here shown, the chamber 13 is formed by a tubular housing 18 constructed of a separate piece of material that may be metal or hard plastic or any other suitable material. This housing is held by a force fit int-o a piece of rubber or plastic hose 16 which is equipped with a standard female coupling 17 for conventional attachment to the male coupling in the end of a hose. Obviously, other suitable means could be provided for attaching the operative parts of the nozzle to the fluid under presure, if desired.

The important construction of the invention resides in the formation of the chamber 13 held in operative position with respect to said fluid source for delivery of fluid therethrough. The tubular housing 18 may be a separate tube of metal or plastic and the like as here shown, or it may be constructed as a part of the hose 16 having both end sections constructed as indicated below. Thus, the housing also contains a wall 22 at the entrance end thereof containing an opening of restricted size therein which is preferably an orifice 19 centrally located therein so as to direct water in a stream having an axis substantially in common with the axis of chamber 13. The discharge end of chamber 13 is equipped with a restricted neck portion or opening 21 having a size somewhat larger than the size of the orifice 19.

The exit opening 21 is not only larger than the entrance orifice 19, but it is also spaced therefrom at a distance close enough to allow the conical shaped spray formed by water passing through the orifice to pass directly through the exit opening. In other words, the exit opening 21 must not impede the hard spray 12 during its normal passage through the end of the nozzle. On the other hand, the opening 21 should be constructed large enough to retain the chamber 13 full of water when a soft flow is desired as will be explained more fully hereinafter.

Thus, it is important to provide the chamber 13 with an end wall 22 containing orifice 19 and a constricted ring like element 23 to reduce the exit portion below that of the chamber 13. Obviously, many ways of constructing these parts could be provided, and as here shown, a tubular housing 18 is utilized which contains ridges 24 to help provide a force fit within the hose end 16. With this construction, housing 18 may be driven in and provide a proper sized chamber 13 therein. The housing 18 is equipped with an end wall 22 and orifice 19 as explained above at the upstream end and has a restricted neck portion 21 at the discharge end. The neck portion 21 of housing 18 also contains a reverse circular flange 26 which is bent back over the hose end 16 and crimped thereover to provide a tight engagement and prevent the tubular housing 18 from being pushed out of the hose end. In operation, the operator simply attaches the nozzle 11 to a flexible hose or the like by screwing coupling 17 in place and turning on the water. The spray issuing from orifice 19 will generally shoot out in the form of a hard spray 12 and pass through opening 21 unimpeded. As this spray forms, a vacuum is built up in the chamber 13 by virtue of the aspirator effect and this causes the spray to pick up air and to spread into a conical shape as indicated. Evidence of this aspirator effect is quite noticeable because the loud hissing caused by air passes into the chamber from between the spray and the exit end of the nozzle. When it is desired to change to a soft spray, the operator simply places his thumb over the end of the nozzle or otherwise impedes the flow of hard spray from the end thereof to cause the chamber 13 to fill with water. When the chamber 13 is full, it will provide back pressure against the hard stream passing through orifice 19 and will hold this hard spray within chamber 13. In this way, a soft flow of water runs from the outlet of the nozzle. The operator can tell when this change is effected by the change of pressure of water against his thumb as he holds the water back. Obviously other means for restricting the flow of water from the end of the nozzle could be provided such as placing the nozzle against a car surface or other surface which would similarly impede the flow of hard spray.

When the soft flow is provided, it will continue until sufficient water is removed to eliminate the back pressure in the chamber 13. This continuation is provided by virtue of the restricted neck portion 21 that prevents the force of water passing through orifice 19 from purging the entire chamber once the thumb or other obstacle is removed. However, the chamber is fairly easily emptied simply by shaking the hose and the operator may do this with one or two quick flips of the nozzle. Then with the chamber thus purged, the loud hissing hard spray again immediately is effected.

It will be appreciated that the distance between the orifice and the outlet and the relative sizes of the openings may be varied somewhat depending upon the velocity of the water through the orifice which in turn is dependent on the pressure source maintained as the water is falling through the orifice, and other considerations. However, it is necessary that the neck portions 21 be restricted in an amount sufficient to prevent the hard spray through the orifice from clearing the chamber. In this connection, the orifice should be small enough to provide a hard spray and should not provide an excess of force on the water in the chamber which might cause the chamber to clear in an unwanted manner. Similarly, the exit opening must be large enough to accommodate adequate clearance of the conical spray and allow ingress of air into the chamber 13 which is maintained under vacuum during the hard spray operation.

A typical example of suitable dimensions for a internal diameter hose is given as follows: The internal diameter of chamber 13 is W the orifice 19 is 1 the diameter of the restricted neck portion is /2" with the length thereof also being /z, and the distance between the shoulder of the restricted neck portion and the orifice is 1 These dimensions have been found to be eminently suitable for use on a /8" garden hose operating from standard hydrant pressure. However, it will be appreciated that other dimensions may be used that conform with other standard sizes and these dimensions are in no way intended to limit the scope of the invention, but instead are given for the sake of illustration.

From the foregoing description, it is seen that I have provided a nozzle which is simple in construction and fool-proof in operation. It is also seen that my nozzle has a minimum of fixed parts which will function with a minimum of wear. It is also seen that my nozzle is capable of performing the quick change operation through simple manual movement on the part of the operator so as to provide a quick change between the hard and soft flow and between soft flow and hard spray.

I claim:

1. A jet nozzle constructed for a quick change of delivery of liquids under pressure between a hard spray and a soft flow and reverse, comprising walls defining a tubular chamber having means for attachment to said liquid source for movement of liquid through said chamber, a Wall at the entrance end of said chamber containing an opening of restricted size therein, and a neck providing a restricted opening at the discharge end of said chamber being larger than said restricted opening at the entrance end.

2. A jet nozzle constructed for a quick change of delivery of liquids under pressure between a hard spray and a soft flow and reverse, comprising walls defining a tubular chamber having means for attachment to said liquid source for movement of liquid through said chamber, a wall at the entrance end of said chamber containing an orifice centrally located therein, and a neck providing a restricted opening at the discharge end of said chamber, said opening being larger than said orifice.

3. A jet nozzle constructed for a quick change of delivery of liquids under pressure between a hard spray and a soft flow and reverse, comprising walls defining a tubular chamber having means for attachment to said liquid source for movement of liquid through said chamber, a wall at the entrance end of said chamber containing an orifice centrally located therein, and a reduced neck portion having a restricted opening at the discharge end of said chamber, said restricted opening being larger than said orifice and in axial alignment therewith, the opening at the discharge end being spaced from said orifice at a distance close enough to allow the conical shaped spray formed by liquid passing through the orifice to pass directly through the exit opening.

4. A jet nozzle constructed for a quick change of delivery of liquids under pressure between a hard spray and a soft flow and reverse, comprising a tubular housing having means for attachment to a flexible hose, said housing defining a chamber having an opening at both ends, said chamber opening nearest the flexible hose and attachment of said nozzle thereto being a centrally located orifice, the opening of said chamber opposite from said orifice being provided by a reduced neck portion of said chamber formed by a small internal flange, said chamber being constructed with the opening opposite from said orifice being larger than said orifice and serving as an exit opening which is spaced from the orifice at a distance sufiicient to allow the conical shaped spray formed by water passing through the orifice to pass directly through said exit opening in the form of a hard spray, said flange portion being of sufiicient size to hold the water in the chamber and maintain water therein 3,288,378 5 6 when it is desired to provide a soft flow from said nozzle. FOREIGN PATENTS 1,294,177 4/1962 France.

References Clted by the Examiner 10,239 1/1915 Great Britain UNITED STATES PATENTS 19,251 6/1915 Great Britain. 973,940 10/1910 Jones 239--589 X 5 628,621 9/1949 Great Britain. 1,529,590 3/1925 Ho' 239-590 1 943 152 1/1934 w 1 M. HENSON WOOD, JR., Primary Examiner. 2, ,4 1/ 1946 Radonich 2391 E ER KI B Examine gfig g h 10 D. L. MCSELEY, V. C. WILKS, Assistant Examiners. 

4. A JET NOZZLE CONSTRUCTED FOR A QUICK CHANGE OF DELIVERY OF LIQUIDS UNDER PRESSURE BETWEEN A HARD SPRAY AND A SOFT FLOW AND REVERSE, COMPRISING A TUBULAR HOUSING HAVING MEANS FOR ATTACHMENT TO A FLEXIBLE HOSE, SAID HOUSING DEFINING A CHAMBER HAVING AN OPENING AT BOTH ENDS, SAID CHAMBER OPENING NEAREST THE FLEXIBLE HOSE AND ATTACHMENT OF SAID NOZZLE THERETO BEING CENTRALLY LOCATED ORIFICE, THE OPENING OF SAID CHAMBER OPPOSITE FROM SAID ORIFICE BEING PROVIDED BY A REDUCED NECK PORTION OF SAID CHAMBER FORMED BY A SMALL INTERNAL FLANGE, SAID CHAMBER BEING CONSTRUCTED WITH THE OPENING OPPOSITE FROM SAID ORIFICE BEING LARGER THAN SAID ORIFICE AND SERVING AS AN EXIT OPENING WHICH IS SPACED FROM THE ORIFICE AT A DISTANCE SUFFICIENT TO ALLOW THE CONICAL SHAPED SPRAY FORMED BY WATER PASSING THROUGH THE ORIFICE TO PASS DIRECTLY THROUGH SAID EXIT OPENING IN THE FORM OF A HARD SPRAY, SAID FLANGE PORTION BEING OF SUFFICIENT SIZE TO HOLD THE WATER IN THE CHAMBER AND MAINTAIN WATER THEREIN WHEN IT IS DESIRED TO PROVIDE A SOFT FLOW FROM SAID NOZZLE. 